Sowing Sakami — The New American Saké Movement Is Fueled by Legacies of Rice, Immigration, and Ingenuity
By Nat Harry
Uninspired by college courses in the 1980s, the fourth-generation farmer returned to the family business in Arkansas, his calling to the combine harvester stronger than to the confines of a traditional college classroom. “I’m not super educated, but I’m not stupid,” says Isbell with a chuckle. “I’ve always been real curious. I never quit trying to learn.” While Isbell never picked a major, he was always interested in the sciences, and his insatiable curiosity would eventually be the catalyst for doing something Japanese agronomists thought couldn’t be done: growing sushi and saké rice varieties in the southern United States.
The Man, Now Myth — Searching for Tony Magee
By Alyssa Pereira
“By just about any standard, Tony Magee should be considered one of the most successful Americans to have ever worked in beer. The soon-to-be 64-year old entrepreneur started California's Lagunitas Brewing Company in 1993, grew its IPA-focused portfolio into one of the largest breweries in the country, and sold to Heineken—one of the largest brewing companies on Earth—in a two-part deal valued at a reported $1 billion. He has been a featured speaker at industry and private events all over the world and has long been cited for his prescient takes on a growing, maturing, and eventually challenged American craft category. He’s thought of as a “king” and “legend” of craft beer.”
EP-408 Jen Price of Crafted for Action and CraftBeerCon
“If you can see, you can be it.” I believe this adage is a great example of the value of diversity in all aspects of life. Seeing someone who looks like you in spaces where most don’t is an unspoken invitation that you belong there too. When I started dipping my toe into Atlanta’s craft beer scene, Jen Price was the first Black woman that I encountered.
TG-013 The Gist—The One With The Boogeyman
Bongs, beer, and boogeymen—on this episode of The Gist, we kick things off with cannabis. Then, Sightlines reporter Kate Bernot shares her insights from the 2024 Craft Brewers Conference in Las Vegas. We’re also joined by special guest Paige Latham Didora, who chats with us about non-competes and the FTC’s recent ban on them. What does it mean for the beer industry? Keep listening to find out.
OT-001 Orchard To Table: A Celebration of Pacific Northwest Cider
This is a special episode hosted in collaboration with the American Cider Association—a great way to bring you an episode with audio from an event dedicated to cider in the culinary space. While you will hear my voice now, this conversation is led by Leah Scafe of Stockpot Collective in Portland, Oregon. Leah worked with the Cider Association to host the roundtable discussion called “Orchard to Table” during the organization’s annual CiderCon event in January 2024.
From Punchline to Bottom Line — Sazarac Buys Up the BuzzBallz Juggernaut
Lost Dog — Lagunitas Tries to Find Itself After Leadership Turnover, Sales Slumps
Hits Different — Some Breweries Don’t Shy Away from Confronting Dry January This Year
Next Germination
Underwriting Collection in Partnership with Guinness
Lady Lager On a Mission — How Alisa Bowens-Mercado Is Using Beer to Bring Economic Empowerment to the Black Community
Social Security — The Hospitality Businesses Offering New Opportunities for Former Prisoners
A Land of Rice and History — The Role of Tuak, the Traditional Fermented Rice Drink, in Sarawak, Malaysia
‘I See You’ — The Evolution of SoCal Cerveceros
Olly Olly
Underwriting Collection in Partnership with Oskar Blues
Our Wilder Selves — The Hunt for Sasquatch in Middle America
Unplugged Under the Stars — How Black Beer Organizations are Diversifying Camping
Ursa Major — Recalibrating for Risk in the Land of Grizzlies
Dead Castles — Exploring the Ruins of the Fortress That Abercrombie & Fitch Built
B-Roll No. 725 Jamaal Lemon
“It begins with taking in a variety of faculties and experiences as an infant and through our teenage years. If we’re lucky, we reap blessings from the encounters of adulthood—only to afford ourselves therapy sessions to help deconstruct past childhood trauma. Human existence is a chronicling carousel, constantly building upon our personalities and oftentimes our life events or impediments—enabling us to refine our existence the more we revisit our past, in all our sincerity.”
Every year, we reflect on how lucky we are to chronicle the stories of folks making the beer world better. From incredible leadership to innovative ways of thinking, these are the people shaping the future of the industry—and we’re thrilled to share them with you. These are the 2023 Signifiers.
